United thinks if they get passengers all riled about about fatties, said passengers will not notice that they're paying more for ever-worse service. So far it seems to be working great! Slick move, United.

For those of you that think this ruling is actually going to change anything, go fly Southwest sometime and let me know how that works out for you. The enforcement of this rule is sporadic at best, nonexistent at worst.

Exactly.

And since the airlines don't even TRY to enforce the rules regarding one small carry-on/one personal item and filling the plane by row order, why would anyone expect the enforcement of this rule to be any different. (Just once in my lifetime, I would like to be able to stow my carryon near my seat and not 15 rows down......)

Dude just get there early and be one of the first to board, it's not rocket science. And don't take it to seriously when they tell you they are only boarding rows xxx, they rarely enforce that.

I recently flew SouthWest. There was a big big fat fatty...prob 400+ pounds. He had to sit by himself in the front two seats. They do enforce it.

Bingo!

Yes United in their benevolence is responding to their customers demands to end this plague of the portly

Late flights, strict mileage restrictions, lost luggage, and bad customer service are seldom complained about compared to fat people pushing the arm rest up and spilling over.

They enforce it but at the cost of losing customers. They are nasy about it and only pick who they want to enforce the rules with. I am an infrequent flyer and I was not told anything about extra cost or ticket until in front of a planeload of people I was told I could not board because of weight, yet there was several men as large around as myself and a lot taller and broader but there was not a problem with them flying on one ticket. Southwest discrimates to their own satisfaction. There is no set regulation on purchasing a second ticket, it is up to the loading clerk's whim. If they want to have this policy, they need to set it the same for every passenger and not on the whim of one person and a rude person at that!!!! Yes I did file a complaint about this employee but yet two years have passed and a friend of mine just had the same experience I had at the same airport, airline and employee. It's still discrimation the way they implement this policy.